Cleaning dust ingress from the Sanyo PROxtraX PLC-XE31

I have a lot of these projectors, and after replacing a bulb on one of them recently, I found that the image was a bit blurry, and there was an uneven purple discolouration across the screen. I wasn’t convinced the new bulb was to blame, so I went looking for another explanation.

I quickly found advice online that a “blotchy uneven purple in the image is caused by dust contamination on the green LCD”. I’d already tried cleaning dust out with compressed air via the side vents, but clearly it needed a more thorough job. It was time for a disassembly.

My goal here was not to completely dismantle the projector, just to open it up far enough for easy access to the optical assembly, where dust ingress causes the most problem. Remember that this procedure is definitely not manufacturer-approved, so don’t screw it up and then try to claim on the warranty. Proceed at your own risk, and do not come crying to me if you break your projector.

The following photos are a guide to how to get this bugger apart:

Remove this screw to open the bulb cavity.

Remove these two screws and CAREFULLY lift out the bulb.

Remove this screw.

Remove these screws.

Remove these screws.

Remove these screws, remove the air filters, then turn over and remove the top cover from back to front.

Remove these screws.

Unplug this connector.

Remove these 9 screws.

Unplug this connector.

Remove this screw and unplug these connectors.

Unplug these connectors.

Disconnect the three ribbon cables by pulling these toggle gently outwards.

Lift up the PCB from back to front. It will still be attached at the front so don’t try to remove it.

Move these ribbon cables out of the way, like so.

Once you’ve got to this point, it’s time to begin dusting. In ideal circumstances I would remove the optical assembly, but it’s very fiddly to remove on this projector. My approach this time was to simply blast as much compressed air as I could into the gaps around the assembly until no more dust was being ejected.

Concentrate on the optical filters indicated by the arrows in the last picture.

Get the face of the lens too (underneath the tweezers in the photo).

Once those parts all seem clean, blast air into any and every crevice you can find inside the rest of the projector. Dust seems to get in everywhere in these things.

Once you’ve cleaned out the rest of the unit, do one final blast around the optical assembly to remove any dust you’ve dislodged from elsewhere.

You can use canned air for this, but I prefer using an electric air compressor since they are higher pressure, and I don’t have to worry about how much of the can I’m using up. Compressors aren’t cheap, but in my view are a sound investment.

Don’t be a hero. You should wear eye protection while doing this, and if the projector is particularly dusty, consider a dust mask for your nose and mouth. Also, don’t do this anywhere you care about dust going all over the place.

Lastly, reassemble using the reverse procedure.

The end result for me was a crisp, brighter image, with no discolouration. In other words, a job worth doing.

If using a “”beefy”” air compressor, I’d be making sure that it has a line filter, to catch the crud which occasionally leaves the tank. I find toothbrushes and shaving brushes handy for cleaning crud out of devices.

Dust ingress is a problem with these and other projectors, I have mine cleaned by a friend and it takes quite a long time. In terms of ‘handyman’ cleaning, You should always a vacuum cleaner to clear the dust i.e you want to suck the dust out not blow it in which is what a compressor does !!

I’ve just done my first one and I must say the instructions are excellent. Now I know where the dusk is I might be tempted to not remove the circuit board and just blow out the dust through the slots where the ribbon cables come through.

Don’t suppose you’ve done a PLC-XE32 as I have half and half of each projector.

If you mean the image is upside down, and you want to turn it the right way up, go to the on-screen menu, go to Settings (last icon on the menu) and scroll down until you get to Ceiling, which has an icon of an upside down R. Set this to Off.

There’s one more step to get a really good clean – the plastic cover surrounding the optical assembly can easily be removed by removing the 4 top mounted screws on it – this give instant access to all the filters, lenses and LCD screens.

Can someone post a photo of the air filters, or at least describe how many there are, etc.? I assume there is one on each side? The fan seems to exhaust out the rear, drawing air in from vents on both sides of the front of the machine, next to the bulb. My machine overheats after about 15 minutes, works fine after a little cool down, then overheats after another 15 minutes. I figure it’s something simple like dirty air filters, but I don’t have a copy of the manual. Thanks.

Hi, saw your article re Sanyo xp31 cleaning. I have another problem…. The unit powers up, green light on and fans start, then after a min or so powers down again. No bulb ignition. I am literally in the dark here. Bulb life was fine, about 2000 hrs used, no indicaion that repacement was needed, just no light at all.
All the filters are clean. Can you help???

Our school XW50 also switches off after about half an hour. Teacher can’t find the remote but I can see that it’s possible to view some of the settings by using the device itself. Under Power Management, what is Code 1, think it might refer to the settings but not sure, need to ‘re-set’ so that it stays on until time to turn off

The ‘Code 1’ refers to one of two sets of codes that the remote control can use. They can be switched so that if you have two projectors in one room (such as in a conference room), you can control them individually without interference. Probably doesn’t help you in this case.

If you need a replacement remote, I’ve got bought a couple of compatible remotes from http://www.wallis-universal.co.uk/ at a significantly lower price than the original. It even has a better range than the original remote as the LED is brighter.